John Paulson Drops Out of Running to Become Trump Treasury Secretary
Investor says his ‘complex financial obligations’ would prevent him from joining administration
Veteran investor John Paulson is dropping out of the running to become President-elect Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary, he said in a statement to The Wall Street Journal.
“Although various media outlets have mentioned me as a candidate for Secretary of the Treasury, my complex financial obligations would prevent me from holding an official position in President Trump’s administration at this time,” Paulson said in the statement. “However, I intend to remain actively involved with the President’s economic team and helping in the implementation of President Trump’s outstanding policy proposals.”
Paulson, who has been an ardent supporter of Trump’s for years, was among a group of people being considered by Trump to be the next Treasury secretary, according to people familiar with the matter.
His decision to remove himself from consideration essentially clears a lane for fellow investor Scott Bessent to land the post. Bessent in recent days has become the favorite to get the job in the next Trump administration, several Trump allies have said. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R., Tenn.) is also seen as a contender, the Journal has previously reported.
Research Calls I
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Upgrades:
- argenx (ARGX) upgraded to Outperform from Peer Perform at Wolfe Research; tgt $697
- Avidbank Holdings (AVBH) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney; tgt $26
- Bristol-Myers (BMY) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Leerink Partners; tgt $73
- Buckle (BKE) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS; tgt raised to $46
- Canadian Nat'l Rail (CNI) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup; tgt raised to $130
- Carter's (CRI) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Citigroup; tgt $50
- C.H. Robinson (CHRW) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup; tgt raised to $127
- iHeartMedia (IHRT) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at BofA Securities; tgt raised to $3
- Intl Flavors (IFF) upgraded to Overweight from Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; tgt lowered to $110
- SentinelOne (S) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank; tgt raised to $32
- South Atlantic Bancshares (SABK) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney; tgt $17.25
- Twilio (TWLO) upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo; tgt raised to $120
- Viking Holdings Ltd (VIK) upgraded to Overweight from Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; tgt raised to $49
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Downgrades:
- AeroVironment (AVAV) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies; tgt $240
- Airbnb (ABNB) downgraded to Reduce from Neutral at Phillip Securities
- Alnylam Pharma (ALNY) downgraded to Underperform from Peer Perform at Wolfe Research
- Asbury Automotive (ABG) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Seaport Research Partners
- Atlas Energy Solutions (AESI) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays; tgt lowered to $19
- First Mid-Illinois Bancshares (FMBH) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at DA Davidson; tgt raised to $47
- Five9 (FIVN) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Wells Fargo; tgt lowered to $40
- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies; tgt lowered to $39.50
- Horace Mann (HMN) downgraded to Mkt Perform from Outperform at Keefe Bruyette; tgt raised to $44
- Hudson Pacific Properties (HPP) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies; tgt lowered to $5
- Knight-Swift (KNX) downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup; tgt $56
- Okta (OKTA) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank; tgt lowered to $85
- Phunware (PHUN) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at H.C. Wainwright; tgt lowered to $6
- Ross Stores (ROST) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup; tgt lowered to $152
- RXO, Inc. (RXO) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup; tgt $33
- Schneider National (SNDR) downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup; tgt lowered to $30
- Sprinklr (CXM) downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo; tgt lowered to $6
- TriCo Bancshares (TCBK) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at DA Davidson; tgt raised to $53
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Others:
- Allegro Microsystems (ALGM) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $30
- Altimmune (ALT) initiated with a Buy at UBS; tgt $26
- Cadence Design (CDNS) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $360
- Illumina (ILMN) resumed with an Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; tgt $156
- Inventiva (IVA) initiated with a Neutral at UBS; tgt $3
- Marvell (MRVL) initiated with a Hold at Loop Capital; tgt $95
- Monday.com (MNDY) resumed with a Neutral at DA Davidson; tgt $300
- Monolithic Power (MPWR) initiated with a Hold at Loop Capital; tgt $660
- NVIDIA (NVDA) initiated with a Buy at Redburn Atlantic; tgt $178
- NXP Semi (NXPI) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $300
- ON Semiconductor (ON) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $95
- Qorvo (QRVO) initiated with a Hold at Loop Capital; tgt $73
- Qualcomm (QCOM) initiated with a Hold at Loop Capital; tgt $180
- Rambus (RMBS) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $70
- Sagimet Biosciences (SGMT) initiated with a Buy at UBS; tgt $12
- Skyworks (SWKS) initiated with a Hold at Loop Capital; tgt $90
- Synopsys (SNPS) initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital; tgt $675
- VEON (VEON) initiated with a Buy at The Benchmark Company; tgt $48
- Wells Fargo (WFC) added to BofA Securities' US 1 List
Gapping down
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- FOUR -11.4%, THS -11.3%, SWTX -10.6%, ANGI -8% (IAC also considering spin-off of its ownership stake), JRVR -7.1%, TME -6.6%, PLUG -4%, SLVM -3.6%, PGY -3.3%, ZETA -3.1%, NPWR -3.1%, NUVL -2%, GATO -1.7%, TALO -1.5%, FLNG -1.5%, AVDL -1.5%, AZN -1.2%, PLL -1.2%, VLN -1.1%
Other news:
- NGNE -33.6% (reports interim data from NGN-401 trial)
- SNDX -17.4% (pivotal topline results from relapsed or refractory mNPM1 AML cohort in AUGMENT-101 trial of revumenib)
- CWAN -4.9% (secondary public offering)
- KRUS -3.7% (stock offering)
- FWRG -3.1% (launches secondary offering by certain funds managed by Advent International of 8,000,000 shares of common stock)
- UPST -2.9% (proposes private offering of $425 mln of Convertible Senior Notes due 2030)
- TER -2% (increases share repurchase plan for 2024)
- FCPT -1.4% (raises quarterly dividend by 2.9% to $0.3550 per share)
- ALV -1.3% (raises dividend and extends share repurchase)
- IVZ -1.1% (prelim month-end AUM)
- CDXS -1% (to present data)
Gapping up
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- NVRO +17.5%, CAMT +10.8%, EVGO +9.3%, TGI +7.9%, SE +6.5%, GRAB +6.4%, LYV +5.8%, AGO +5.5% (also increases repurchase plan), LAZR +4.9%, SHLS +4%, ONON +3.8%, HUYA +3.4%, TH +3.1%, SRRK +3%, AROC +2.9%, IBRX +2.6%, AXSM +2.2%, YALA +2.1%, GENI +2.1%, HD +1.8%, ROIV +1.6%, EGY +1.3%, LEGN +1.1%, IAC +0.8%
Other news:
- ORGO +12.3% (reports interim analysis of trial of ReNu)
- ZGN +2.2% (controlling shareholder Monterubello purchased 913,000 shares and intends to acquire additional 2 mln shares in the coming weeks)
- DOMO +2.1% (selected by Bond Vet for its tech platform)
- LIVN +1.3% (OSPREY study meets safety and efficacy endpoints)
- CAH +1.3% (acquires two strategic additions to its portfolio)
- BEN +0.8% (prelim month-end AUM)
- GILD +0.8% (Scientific Leadership Spotlighted as Gilead Presents Research Data Across Its Broad and Innovative HIV Treatment Portfolio and Pipeline)
Early premarket gappers
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Gapping up:
- NVRO +16%, LAZR +14.7%, TGI +13.3%, ORGO +12.3%, GRAB +10.7%, CAMT +9.8%, SE +7.1%, LYV +6.6%, ZGN +5.6%, AROC +5.6%, YALA +5.3%, KRUS +4.9%, HUYA +4.6%, AGO +4%, ONON +3.9%, EGY +3.4%, HD +2.4%, EAF +2.4%, TH +2.4%, DOMO +2.1%, IAC +1.8%, LIVN +1.3%, GILD +0.8%
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Gapping down:
- NGNE -34.6%, ANGI -10.3%, SWTX -9.2%, JRVR -7.1%, TME -6.5%, ZETA -6.3%, CWAN -3.4%, NPWR -3.1%, FWRG -2.9%, TER -2.5%, SGMT -2.2%, AZN -2.1%, HOOD -2%, BGNE -2%, NUVL -2%, ALV -1.6%, BEN -1.5%, TALO -1.5%, FCPT -1.4%, IVZ -1.1%, TT -1.1%, VLN -1.1%, CDXS -1%, FUFU -0.9%